Tax Matters: R&D tax credits; Patent Box plus SEIS / EIS course

Here’s a round up of some recent financial & tax news that might be of interest – you can find an audio download version of this post below:

Calls for quarterly R&D tax relief for SMEs
In an effort to boost SME cashflow, there are calls for the Government to make the UK R&D tax incentive a quarterly rather than end of year tax relief. Currently SME companies claim R&D tax relief retrospectively. Large companies can, however, reduce (in year) quarterly instalment tax payments that they are required to make thereby securing the benefit of the relief earlier. This measure would help level the playing field. This makes sense – we’ll have to wait and see…

March Budget 2016 – Pension countdown
George ‘O’ will step up on 16 March 2016 to deliver his Budget Statement and the big news is expected to be regarding restrictions on income tax relief on pensions for higher rate tax-payers.

Action point: Consider making pension contributions in advance of the Budget date.

Patent Box changes afoot – act now
New, more stringent rules will apply to companies that elect into the Patent Box tax incentive after 30 June 2016. This follows the ‘beating’ this UK Gov tax incentive received from other EU states following its introduction in 2013 (but for how much longer in the light of a possible Brexit….?).

Action point: If you have a patent or patent pending, consider electing in before 30 June 2016.

Get ready for new dividend tax rates
From 6 April 2016, new dividend tax rates will apply that results in an almost complete shake-up of the fairly established remuneration structures for most owner-managed companies.

Action points: Run some calculations to see how you might be affected and consider paying further dividends in advance of the 5 April 2016 deadline. Note that companies that qualify for R&D tax relief might have some of the down-side offset by receiving a greater proportion of the remuneration in the form of PAYE salary / bonus and claiming enhanced R&D tax relief (dividends are not eligible).

Buy-to-let changes – traps for the unwary
I probably don’t need to tell you more about the widely publicised restrictions being placed on buy-to-let interest relief etc but watch out for the Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) 3% surcharge that can bite in what might otherwise be fairly innocuous circumstances…

For example, buy a new residential house before selling old residential house = 3% ouch! You might be able to receive a refund in these circumstances but the initial additional SDLT outlay can be significant and is yet another case of a tax sledge-hammer to crack a nut!

SEIS / EIS Course Launch
By popular demand, we have set up a new course setting out in the ins-and-outs of the hugely popular (yet often misunderstood!) Seed Enterprise Investment Scheme (SEIS) and Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS).

These UK Government tax incentives are growing in popularity – especially with the growth of crowd-funding platforms such as Crowdcube. We have helped and continue to help 100’s of companies navigate and make the most of these tax reliefs which can be quite tricky to navigate for the uninitiated.

If you are a company founder or considering diversifying into business angel investing yourself, you should benefit from this course.